Criminal liability for cruelty to animals under the legislation of Ukraine: features of theory and practice

The study aimed to determine the characteristics of criminal liability for cruelty to animals. The object of the study is social relations arising in the field of morality protection. We used the following general scientific methods: dialectical, historical, descriptive, methods of scientific analysis and generalization. In addition to general scientific methods, we also used special methods: comparative legal and statistical. Having performed a retrospective analysis of criminal liability for cruelty to animals, we identified four historical stages in the formation and development of criminal legal standards for cruelty to animals. Having investigated the reasons for the social conditioning of criminalization for cruelty to animals, the authors identified a range of problems in the field of humane treatment of animals that require immediate solutions: the use of animals in scientific experiments, the manufacture of clothing from leather and animal fur, the activities of dog hunters and the use of animals in circuses. Factors affecting the cruelty of a person have been also identified. The delimitation of corpus delicti from an administrative offense is carried out according to several main criteria: the degree of public danger and consequences. International experience in the context of criminal liability for cruelty to animals is diverse.